King Abdulaziz Book Award

King Abdulaziz Book Award is an annual award granted by the King Abdulaziz Foundation for Research and Archives (Darah). Launched for its first edition in 2014, It aims to encourage scientific competition and support historical, social, and literary works related to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Arabian Peninsula throughout the ages. Headquartered in the capital, Riyadh, it is considered one of the foundation's most important initiatives to document national and Islamic history.

The prize is supported by the foundation's Chairman of the Board of Directors and the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. The prize is supervised by the Secretary-General of the foundation, while it is managed by a specialized body tasked to regulate the mechanisms and procedures of scientific arbitration, and it is responsible for announcing the award’s schedule related to the dates of submission, nomination, and the award ceremony for the winners.

King Abdulaziz Book Award is awarded to individuals in recognition of their effort, innovation, and scientific authenticity in eight categories, including the history of Saudi society, the monuments of the Kingdom, its literature and geography, studies related to the history of the Founder, King Abdulaziz Bin Abdulrahman Al Saud, studies related to Islamic history and the Arabian Peninsula, as well as books issued in a foreign language about the history of the Kingdom and the Arabian Peninsula.

The award offers its support and appreciation to authors of all nationalities. It receives nominations for the award from individuals, scientific and cultural institutions, and publishing houses. The nominated product is required to add scientific and cognitive value to its field, adhere to the main objectives of the foundation, and achieve the scientific approach followed in research. The product must also be recent in either authorship or investigation, and it must have never won any other cultural award.

With a value of SAR800,000, with each category amounting to SAR100,000, the King Abdulaziz Book Award is one of the highest cultural prizes in terms of value and its direct link to the most important source of national history in the Kingdom.